#PottersKiDiwali Trends As People Pledge To Support Local Artisans & Buy Earthen Lamps

Diwali 2019 is just a week away and we’re all geared up for the festivities. It is the time to light up our homes and gorge on mom-made mithai. For kumhars or potters, it is also the time to sell handcrafted wares that they’ve been making for months in anticipation of the auspicious festival.

Unfortunately, an increase in the rate of raw materials coupled with slowing demand has negatively impacted their profits. Hindustan Times quoted 63-year-old Harkishan, a craftsperson from Delhi saying,

“Plastic, glass, and aluminium wares have replaced earthenware in homes. There is a declining appreciation for handmade and handcrafted items.”

But this year, they are more hopeful because more and more people are now buying local, eco-friendly products.

“Earlier Chinese lights had caused a slowdown in the demand of earthen lamps but the traditional ways are making a comeback. The demand for earthen lamps is very good this year,” an artisan from West Bengal was quoted saying by Business Standard.

And supporting them in their endeavour is ‘Mission PKD’ or #PottersKiDiwali. It is not a Harry Potter reference but a pledge to support local artisans and celebrate with earthen lamps.

Mission PKD stands for Potters Ki Diwali

This mission is being carried out on 20-21 October by common People who've contacted potters & talked to people too

This is a purely self funded awareness Mission. I tried my best to cover all Indian states

Can we trend #PottersKiDiwali

— Anshul Saxena (@AskAnshul) October 21, 2019

Essentially the mission raises awareness about local crafts and encourages people to keep the tradition of oil lamps alive by:

1. Saying no to imported lights
2. Buying from kumhars and avoiding bargaining with them
3. Gifting earthen diyas to friends and family

Check out the various posts on this trending thread.

Dear friends,

Diwali is around. Buy diyas from people who wait for this festival whole year.

Don't disappoint them. This diwali #GoLocal#PottersKiDiwali pic.twitter.com/HzZoNTXg9D

— Utkarsh Goel (@Baaba_Goel) October 21, 2019

Do celebrate this #Diwali with #Potters instead of Chinese crackers. Buy pots and make the potters smile, So that they have a good year ahead! #PottersKiDiwali 😊 pic.twitter.com/2SwPtoZFop

— Pragnesh Prajapati (@PragneshUpala) October 21, 2019

Gentle reminder for Diwali: Don't buy made in China wax diyas. Buy earthen diyas from local manufacturers. It helps create employment.

— bhaavna arora (@BhaavnaArora) October 21, 2019

Potters are the reason we can fill whole country with lights. This diwali let's make them happy. #PottersKiDiwali

— लफंडर (@Laphandar) October 21, 2019

#PottersKiDiwali let’s celebrate this Diwali with our own indigenous products rather then Chinese goods

— ankit tiwari (@ankitt977) October 21, 2019

It's always #PotterskiDiwali for my family.. bought local diyas… #PKD pic.twitter.com/sYfVLQHYB1

— kamal lahoty (@kklahoty) October 21, 2019

Do not bargain with them.

Instead of buying sweets that every home anyways overflows with, think of giving diyas as gifts.

Spend some time with them and wish them a happy Diwali

Make them smile after they sweat to brighten our festival#PottersKiDiwali pic.twitter.com/eH1ufUw6pE

— Deepika Narayan Bhardwaj (@DeepikaBhardwaj) October 21, 2019

Let's buy organic, indigenous, even a little more than we need! Fun thing to do is for parents to get together with their kids & paint the plain brown ones with different colours! #PottersKiDiwali #JoyousDiwali 🪔 https://t.co/KNmqcvyobo

— Jyoti Kapur Das (@jkd18) October 21, 2019

#PottersKiDiwali Potters are among those who keeps our tradition alive. So make them happy this diwali with buying diyas.

— Pratik Chaubey (@PratikChaubey) October 21, 2019

This Diwali Help our Potters… #potterskidiwali pic.twitter.com/cNsEl1c15Y

— 🅢 🅤 🅝 🅘 🅛 (@Singlepasangaa) October 21, 2019

#PottersKiDiwali: Address: Beside KFC Signal, Indiranagar, Bengaluru.

I request all to share such pics with address of their local vendors in their respective areas…. pic.twitter.com/nm2FLR9WVo

— Manish Prasad (@_manish25) October 21, 2019

https://twitter.com/paria00123/status/1186184762865487872

Would you take this pledge and champion the cause of indigenous potters this Diwali?

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